Someone asked me how my blog and newspaper column came to be titled "Bleachers Brew". It's like this, it's an amalgam of sorts of two things: The bleachers area in the stadium/arena where I used to sit when I would watch baseball, football, and basketball games and Miles Davis' great jazz album Bitches Brew. That's how it got culled together. I originally planned on calling it "The View from the Big Chair" that is a nod to Tears For Fear's second album, Songs from the Big Chair. So there.

Monday, August 27, 2012

Five
questions that need answering by the Ateneo Blue Eagles after eight games.

by rick olivares

I missed the second round Ateneo-UP
game because I was at an event where I am heavily involved (the Clear Dream
Match) so I asked people whose views and opinions I greatly value so I had a
better understanding of the Blue Eagles’ struggles in that match. I wish I had
a chance to watch the replay but I missed that as well.

But after eight matches, this here
needs some pointing out and answering.

Can
the Blue Eagles win it all again?

Of course, they can. They are at a
robust 7-1, tops in the league thus far with FEU, UST, La Salle and NU right
behind. Are any of those teams a lock to make the Final Four? Not at all.

Ateneo 7-1

FEU 6-2

UST 7-2

La Salle 5-3

NU 5-4

UE 1-7

Adamson 1-8

UP 1-7*

FEU is a much better team than
initially advertised. They finally have the low-post presence they did not have
last year with the addition of Anthony Hargrove and Arvie Bringas.

UST. These guys are a tough nut to
crack. They have a small rotation but these guys deliver. The x-factor for them
is the play of Aljon Mariano who like La Salle’s Jeron Teng knows how to use
his body when going in for a drive.

La Salle. They have picked it up of
late and can only get better. And to be led by a rookie in Jeron Teng who can
only get better? Incredible!

NU. Pre-season faves to book a finals
seat are fading. And they still have to play three more upper tier squads in
the second round. They can actually miss the boat with their underwhelming
play.

Astute basketball observers have
noticed that the Red Warriors, never mind if they are in the dumps, had a
different look to them during their last game even if they lost to La Salle. It
is said that it is attributed to the coaching change. I feel bad for Jerry
Codinera but this team should pick it up soon.

Adamson. Even without Alex Nuyles and
the other players they’ve lost from the previous season, they hang tough. Leo
Austria has some upcoming studs in Jericho Cruz, Janses Rios, Ryan Monteclaro,
Michael Agustin, and Don Trollano. Under-sized in height but not in heart.

UP. Could very well end the season
winless after it looks like their earlier victory will be overturned for using
an ineligible player in Chris Ball. Ball’s okay except that his paperwork has
not been fixed which beggars me. He’s been with the team since the other year
so how come it has not been fixed? Hate to say this but heads should roll on
this.

Is Ateneo a lock to book a Final Four
seat? Sure but their record notwithstanding, they cannot afford a loss because
it will drop them into a tie with the next couple of teams. Any combination of
losses can hurt their standing. I certainly hate their penchant for playing Jekyll
and Hyde. They get up for the good teams and wait to be threatened before they
turn on the jets against the lower tier squads. It will not happen everyday
when you can turn it on. Witness the loss to UST.

The bench has been erratic with their
play as have some players. Yet in spite of that, they are top offensive and
defensive team.

Ateneo has averaged 74.2 points and
surrendered 64.0 on the defensive end.

We’re a few games away from locking up
a twice-to-beat advantage slot. And that is the first objective. We’ll take it
from there once we’ve achieved that.

Is
there anything that I think that the team should address?

Yes, there are two things.

First, it’s some people looking too
much for their own shot. When you have the Buddha in the lane as Phil Jackson
once said, you feed the Buddha. And that is Greg Slaughter. It’s been two years
and some cannot seem to get it in their head that when you have a massive
center like that you go to him. As it is, Ateneo leads the points in the pain
category with 38.3 (that was through seven matches as I was unable to get the
numbers for the last match). When you go inside that means you have greater
chances to score and to go to the line.

It is this same logic that one team
fails to understand why they do not get the calls. When you keep bombarding
from the outside who is going to foul you?

Back to getting shots, this was
something that Jai Reyes understood later on and it helped him become a more
lethal player as he took shots in the flow and learned to facilitate for higher
percentage shots.

Juami Tiongson and Ryan Buenafe (eighth
and tenth respectively) are two Ateneans with over 20 assists in the tournament
so far. It’s a good sign that the first and second units have facilitators on
offense. And when you think about it, the starting five of Ateneo has three
players who can pass that ball in Greg Slaughter, Kiefer Ravena, and Tiongson
(add Tonino Gonzaga to that number when he starts).

Sharing the rock has been on of the
hallmarks of the past title teams. There is no reason why it will not work
again.

Second, it’s the production from the
three-spot or small forward position. That has been manned by committee with
Oping Sumalinog, Ryan Buenafe, and Tonino Gonzaga.

Ryan averages 5.1 points per outing
while Zags and Oping chip in 4.5 and 3.5. That’s a total of 11.1 points. The
thing is, Ryan is much better than that. Ditto with Zags and Oping. They have
to be more consistent with their production because it eases the load on Greg
Slaughter and Nico Salva.

How
does Greg Slaughter stack against the league’s top centers?

In the updated individual standings,
Greg is only eighth overall and the second center behind UST’s Karim Abdul who
is in fifth place.

Greg is second in scoring and fourth
in rebounding. He is tops though in shot blocks. You can say that the stats are
underwhelming. But

As it is, NU’s Ray Parks is leading in
the statistical race for Most Valuable Player. At this point, any Blue Eagles
in the running are in the bottom of the top ten. Now it has to be impressed
that the individual awards aren’t important – and I do mean impressed into
their heads – and that the title is more important. It was like this during the
three-peat when we hardly picked up any post-season awards. But at the end of
the day, the title was way sweeter.

The Big Fella has to be aware of the
help defense coming from the weak side. I am surprised that there is a lack of
communication when it comes to this. Greg has to quickly pass out of that
double team or else he’ll get bottled up.

And one more thing he has to
understand – he will not see the end of the hacking, holding, tripping, and
endless mind games the others will employ against him. I spoke to him about
this against FEU and he handled it fine. I was surprised to hear that he fell
for Raul Soyud’s physical game last time around. When he gets bothered he’s out
of the game. Grin and bear it, Greg. Just make them pay on the offensive and
defensive end.

Now the onus is on the officiating to
make sure the game is played the right way. Watching Sunday’s games, I can only
say, “What on earth are these guys calling?”

Will
Tonino Gonzaga ever find his lost jump shot?

This is the second time that I am
mentioned Gonzaga as a key point.

He was supposed to be this year’s
supersub but has alternately wafted being defensive stopper and fireman. His
value is immeasurable because he does a lot of things that do not show on the
stat sheet. I noticed that he is rushing his jump shot (that includes his three
pointer). Parang gigil. Instead of being relaxed and taking the shot in the
flow of things like he did last year, his release and jump are erratic.

Case in point: Zags shot at 41.1%
accuracy clip last year. This year, he’s at 32%.

I have been monitoring Zags closely
and we’ve had conversations about it. I believe it’s the wrist action. But I have
no doubt, he’ll find the range and play more consistently down the stretch.

He scored 10 points against UP in the
last outing. That’s a tournament high so far. Let’s see if that gets him
untracked.

Who
needs to step it up?

Everyone! But Nico Elorde and Juami
Tiongson have to hit those jumpers to keep defenses honest. JP Erram needs more
playing time. Von Pessumal has to produce when he gets his minutes. And if
Justin Chua and Frank Golla can contribute mightily then that will see us
rolling.

Agree on all points especially with some people wanting the individual awards. Additional points for me after watching the games:-

1.) Some players need (will not mention who they are) to share the ball more.2.) Nico Salva has been well scouted and they have made the defensive adjustments. Hence, he's getting the same treatment as Greg from the opposing player. He's been taken out of his groove for two straight games already. He needs to have a two man game with our PG or Greg. 3.) Ryan Buenafe needs to be involved more by his teammates. Sometimes the ball movement stagnates and is passed off only to him at the last moment wherein he's forced to jack up a desperation shot or drive. Involve him more and he will reward you with timely assists and drop passes and of course those highlight reel worthy shots.4.) The crowd needs to step up also. Seriously.5.) The BBB seems more like a spectator. Timing of cheers also are off.

Greg Slaughter might not be on the forefront of most of the stats among the Centers, but I think his Field Goal Percentage is thru the roof. My guess is that it is probably 60-70%, among the best if not the best in the league.

Twitter Updates

What I do for a living?

I work for Mindshare Philippines where I handle public relations (throw in a lot of marketing and activation ideas) for Gatorade and soon Mountain Dew and Quaker Oats.

I currently write regularly for Business Mirror; ph.nba.com; philstar.com; pba.inquirer.net; and abs-cbnnews.com. I also have been frequently contributing of late to FHM, Men's Health, SHOT, and Futbol Balita magazines. I have also written and contributed to a whole bunch of newspapers, magazines, and websites. Not to mention senate research papers.

I am the media officer for the Clear Dream Match, Filoil Flying V Hanes Premier Cup and the National Basketball Training Center.

I do PR consultancy for a variety of clients that I do not want to divulge.

My blog, Bleachers' Brew, serves as a hub for many of my writings (but not all as there are some that are exclusive).

When I have free time, I listen to my collection of over 5,000 CDs, read, watch DVDs, or walk my dog around the subdivision.

Liverpool FC

My all-time favorite football team. I bleed Liverpool Red.

Books in my collection: The Untold Story of Marvel Comics by Sean Howe

More twists, turns, dangling subplots, and gruesome ends than any comic book.